Always Watches, No Eyes
by Piper-Knight
Summary: Sakura Haruno has a secret. She traveled into the woods alone. She picked up the pages. And she won. Now, he's after her. He haunts her life, and she can't find a way to get out. She moves to Amegakure, and finds herself in the employment of a gang called Akatsuki. Can they save her from her nightmares, or will they be dragged down with her? Based off the Slender Man Myth and Game.
1. Can't Run

Piper: Hi guys! I've been trying to get back into writing more, so hopefully this will help get me back on track.

**NOTE:** This story involves the Slender Man myth/the game "Slender". If you've heard of neither, look them up. The game "Slender" is a free game, simple to play, and fun when you want to get scared. Be careful where you download it, just incase, and try to find the origional sight if you want to download it. If you just want to check it out and see what it's about, look for "Slender Playthrough" on Youtube. You'll find tones of vids.

**WARNINGS: **AU. SakuxMulti. This story will include horror, some angst (maybe).

I don't own Naruto or Slender Man/Slender.

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Chapter 1 - Can't Run

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**Sakura Haruno**

_The hallways were so thin and terrifying, especially since I knew that something was chasing me. But I knew that another page had to be in there. It was the only building I could find that wasn't locked tight. But it's open feeling ended right at the door, because the building was full of dangerous dead ends that threatened to get me stuck. But, so far, I hadn't seen my pursuer. It was strange, seeing as I already had the majority of the pages to his little game._

_He had gotten more persistent the longer I had lingered inside the forest, his domain. I didn't know why he was chasing me, if I could really call it chasing when I never saw his legs move, but I did know that he wanted something from me. Whether it was me or the pages I carried, I didn't know. All I knew was that I had to keep pushing forward, or I would die._

_My camera's battery was dying, I realized with a roll of fear. I could see my only source of light dimming with each passing second. I knew that soon I would be drenched in darkness and without a way to see back to the fence. I would be even more blind then I already was, the whole territory unfamiliar and intimidating. The fact that it was the dead of night made it so much more terrifying, with fog clinging to the air beneath the leaves of the forest._

_I had no flashlight, only the video camera clutched in my hand. It was an expensive video camera, one of the finest money could buy, for I had once longed to be a movie producer and loved to take videos. It had been a gift from my father before he had been called back to the front line of war. It was dear to me, and now it was the only thing keeping me from being swallowed in darkness. The video was running, and a small thrill went through me when I realized that if I got out alive I would have footage of the strange being chasing me. But, the depleting battery symbol in the corner and the dimming of the lights was beginning to terrify me._

_This tiled building was no better than the forest it was in. I couldn't decipher any reason for the building at all. It held no furniture and was completely tiled through like a bathroom. The most I saw from the building were the multiple exits and one brown chair that had been curiously flipped on its side in one of the hallways. The small dead ends had nothing in them either, so it wasn't like the building used to be a house. It was like it had been built just to corner unsuspecting victims._

_My heart was hammering loudly in my chest as I found myself at another empty dead end. I was so cold that I hadn't even felt myself shaking, but I knew I was by the way the dimming beam of my video recorder twitched. It was getting closer to winter, mid fall back then. But, I couldn't truly say whether I had been shaking from the cold or from the vicious, raw fear that had implanted itself into my heart._

_If I hadn't suffered from anxiety before that instance, I certainly did then._

_I didn't want to move, and I stood there staring at the wall in front of me. The fear of having to turn around was heavy in my chest, but I knew that he would get me just as quick if I just stood there. So, after taking in a slow breath, I turned back around and into the hallway with fear clawing at my insides._

_A breath I hadn't known that I had been holding came out when I saw the hallway was empty, but it also left me with the fearful curiosity of where he was lurking. Brushing it off, I continued to make my way down the hall. If I didn't find the page soon my flash light would go out and I would have no way to navigate in the darkness._

_I took the turn slowly and saw the hall empty, seeing two ways I could go. I could go straight and take a left at the end of the hall, or I could take the right that I had come from. Knowing I hadn't checked the other side, I continued to walk straight so that I could reach the end of the hall._

_As I passed the right turn, something caught my eye. Instinctively, I looked._

_Screams clawed their way up my throat as I found myself staring at the figure of my chaser. He stood silent, still and haunting. I could hear my video recorder begin to crackle with static, the video image that displayed back to me showing that it was blurring more and more with each passing second. It was almost as if he were pulling the very life out of my camera. I pushed my thoughts down and sprinted the rest of the way down the hall. My heart was beating as fast as my feet were running, and I refused to stop._

_All I could hear was the sound of the static on my recorder slowly retreating, my heart beat, and the sound of my rough breath coming out in cold puffs of air. I couldn't hear him chasing me, but I knew that he was. He shouldn't be real, I thought childishly. But even I knew that it was naive to think that way anymore. Not after what I had been through, not after what I had seen._

_I turned left, and saw another left ahead of me. I turned, and felt fear slam me as I saw another dead end. But, I realized as my almost dead light scanned over the wall keeping me trapped, that the last page was crookedly attached to the wall. I didn't care to keep my camera steady as I darted for the page, reaching my hand out._

_Just as I snatched the page up, something curled around my left wrist. I turned around sharply, finding my attacked right behind me. My camera light lit up his pale features, and my scream was accompanied by the loud scratching of static coming from the last few bits of life in my camera battery._

_My whole world blanked, and-_

* * *

A scream tore its way from my throat, and I shot up straight in my bed. I searched wildly, and found my alarm clock was innocently blaring from my bedside, the red letters blinking "10:30" into my terrified face. When I realized that I wasn't in the thick of a forest and was in the comfort of my own bed in my home, my heart rate slowly began to decline once more.

The hand that had been clutching at the material of my nightshirt above my heart slowly began to loosen. The aftershock of fear was still crawling along my cold, dampened skin. I felt utterly exhausted and not rested, knowing that as long as I kept having nightmares I wouldn't be able to fully sleep in comfort. I went to sleep every night, afraid to close my eyes because I knew what assault would attack my mind once it succumbed to sleep.

I shut off the alarm before sliding out of my covers, feeling cold sweat on my skin. I padded around my messy room, lazily dodging half-way unpacked boxes on auto pilot. I couldn't get my mind off of my nightmares, but hoped that a nice shower would help me clear my mind and set myself straight for the long day ahead.

* * *

You wouldn't be able to tell that it was Summer time with how cold it was in Amegakure. It rained everyday in my new place of residence and kept the temperature low all year round. I used to love the cold before the incident last fall. Now, it was only a blunt reminder of my nightmares.

I found myself walking through the busy streets of the city early that morning. I was job hunting, because there was no way I could spend the last two months of the Summer without something to keep my mind occupied. I felt paranoid every time I was left alone for too long, and with one working parent and one parent over seas. I would be alone for the majority of the day. I wouldn't be able handle being alone for so many hours. I would end up driving myself insane with fear and worry before the first few hours ran out.

So, I came to the conclusion that getting a job would be the best choice of action. My mother was against it, due to the new mental state I had taken. I had stopped interacting with people in general and had dropped my friends and family faster then hot coals. I had secluded myself, but craved some kind of company to keep me from being alone. I knew that I couldn't be trusted with my own thoughts, while she just plainly thought I couldn't be trusted, period.

The rich society was something I had never taken to, which upset my rather heavy-wallet mother. She was a big business woman while my father had been a military man. I didn't get to speak with him much, but missed him terribly. I would feel more safe if he was at home, but I knew that he was needed elsewhere. He was defending our country, and even though he couldn't be around to protect me from the darkness that lurked within it I still loved him.

I looked into a few jobs at some of the local cafes and grocery stores near my building complex, but I found myself a bit turned off from having to socialize with people on a constant, continuous basis. I knew I shouldn't be so picking, but even the part of me that craved to not be lonely knew that there was only so much of people I could take without becoming a bit overwhelmed. I didn't know how to interact with them any longer, because they weren't the same. They weren't tainted.

Wandering the city for a few hours, I found myself sitting in an open, outdoor cafe around noon. I had no luck with finding any jobs other than cashier and waitress jobs. I felt a bit put off at the lack of teenager jobs in such a large city except for the basic, low-wage jobs every other teenager of the current time was forced to endure. But I wasn't like every other teenager of the current time. I couldn't force myself into smiling at customers or be someone who had to look picture perfect. I need a background job.

Sipping lazily at my coffee, I watched the busy bustle of the city. I wasn't used to seeing everything in such an uproar. My old home had been a simple, calm town with a small population of about two-thousand. My mother had loved it, being able to work city work in a small town. She loved being able to flaunt her money around. Living in such a small area with so much money made her feel big and bad. She was slightly bitter when she realized how catatonic I had become, and decided to take her company up on its offer of moving us closer and provide me with a change of scenery.

She didn't know that no matter where she moved me, he would follow.

My green eyes took in the many faces that passed. They were fleeting, and I wouldn't remember them by the end of the day. I just took comfort in seeing their humanity, despite my sadness of not finding a quick job. I had wanted something as soon as possible to keep my days as busy and fast paced as the local traffic.

Something caught my eyes, and I looked up.

Two men. They were so different from the crowd. People seemed to scatter around them, parting when they saw the men advancing. No one looked them straight in the face, either. They seemed to recognize something about the men. I don't know whether they respected it or fear it, but either one seemed to get the men the access they wanted through the crowd. The walked passed my table, and I looked over my shoulder to continue watching.

One of them had hair the color of liquid silver, slicked back across his head. I had noticed as he past that he had deep, purple eyes that seemed to shine with an egotistical gleam. He was rather built, as you could tell beneath the jacket he wore. His partner was covered. His head and most of his face were veiled away from the rest of the world. But, as he passed I gotten a good look at his eyes. It was almost impossible to miss them, because they were brightly discolored. The whites of his eyes were a deep crimson, while the middles were a bright green.

Both were dressed in a black jacket that had an odd red cloud with white trim along the edges.

I watched the odd pair curiously, feeling an interest I hadn't had in any form of life for a long time.

The two stopped at a bulletin board a few feet away. It was old and soggy, most papers perched on it soaked all the way or so old that they were undistinguishable. The man with multicolored eyes reached into his jacket and pulled out a plastic baggy. It contained a bunch of papers and what looked like a staple gun on the inside.

He pulled the staple gun and some of the papers out before tucking the bag under his arm and stapling them to the board.

Pursing my lips, I watched as they stapled a few to the board before beginning to walk away.

Curiosity got the better of me, and I rose from my table to wander over to the board. I plucked one of their fliers off of it, bringing it closer to my face because I had forgotten to put my contacts in that morning. I scanned the paper, my eyes catching the main heading of the flyer:

**Courier wanted. Akatsuki official business.**

I didn't know what the Akatsuki was, but I did know that courier was a perfect job for me. All I needed to do was learn a bit more about the area and I could start delivering things. It wasn't smart to jump right into a job that I knew nothing about and for people I knew nothing about, but I needed it. I needed the job and I needed the distraction.

Spinning on my heels, I slapped some money down on my table before sprinting into the crowd. It didn't take me long to see the two men walking ahead of me, seeing as the crowd still split for them when they walked. It was almost like a normal occurrencefor the people, moving out of their way to make room for these two men. Something drew me to them, but I smothered it down.

"Hey!" I called, making several people turn to stare in my direction.

The men didn't seem to realize that my first call was directed at them, so I proceeded to call a few more times before the two finally turned to look and see who was making a commotion. I didn't feel as confident when I felt their eyes fall on me, but I knew that I needed to try. I couldn't let the job slip through my fingers without even trying.

People stared at me, dumbfounded. They looked like I had broken some sacred, unspoken rule that was to never be forgotten or cross. The men, however, looked like they were unused to getting called out to in the streets like it was some unnatural occurrence. Judging from their rugged, unapproachable appearances, it wasn't. I couldn't let that throw me off.

"You're looking for a courier?" I asked simply, watching the two blink slightly.

Finally, the multicolored eyed man nodded. "Yes, we are."

"I'll do it."

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**Piper: A bit of a slow beginning, but I liked it. The chapters should also get longer. Tell me what you think and if I should continue this. If not, I'll probably try something else.**

**Like I stated above, if you don't know the Slender Man myth or haven't heard of the game "Slender", you should look into it.**

**Please review, I hoped it was okay.**


	2. Can't Run pt2

**Piper: I'm glad you guys enjoyed the first chapter :) I've had horrible writers block for like two months, not being able to write anything at all, and I just didn't feel like writing at all. I hope this will help.**

**I don't own Naruto or Slender Man/Slender.**

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Chapter 2 - Can't Run Pt 2

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**Sakura Haruno**

The men stared at me blankly, the silver haired one looking less than amused. The one with the discolored eyes, however, looked thoughtful as he scanned over my small stature critically.

My heart was beating slightly faster inside of my chest. I knew it was rash and foolish of me to even consider working with these men. They looked like they belonged in prison somewhere with how large and built they were. The whole vibe they gave off should've been enough to drive me away from them, like it did the rest of the public. However, I didn't want to let this chance slip through my fingers. I needed the distraction, no matter how dangerous it was. But, second thoughts were already swimming inside my head and my stomach turned queasy,

"We don't fucking need any little girls-" The silver haired man began, before receiving a rather harsh whack to the back of the head.

"Shut up, idiot. You don't have any say in this," The other man said in a monotone, the gears in his head almost visibly turning in thought.

The silver haired man's face flushed red in anger, and he looked ready to curse the man into oblivion. I was surprised when he held his tongue, however, and gave me a quick once over with hungry purple eyes. I felt a bit violated as he finished up his once-over before his partner, scoffing and crossing his arms over his chest, pouting to himself.

"Are you good at running?" The other man questioned, his odd eyes piercing into my very soul.

I nodded, my choppy bangs swishing into my face. "Yes. I used to run cross country. I was the best of my team. I'm new too the area, but I'm good at finding my way around new areas."

He dipped his head slightly. "Do you know what you are getting yourself into, dealing with us?"

My lips pursed. Maybe it hadn't been such a good idea after all. "Call it a whim, but I need money and I need to stay out of my house. I'm a hard worker and I'll complete any task you need done."

His eyes flashed greedily, taking my words closer to heart than even I had. I saw him scratch at his chin thoughtfully, ignoring the grumbling that was now coming from his partner. He gave my small form another once over, before pulling out his cell phone. It was expensive and brand new, something you wouldn't have expected to see on such a character. He passed it over to me however, and told me to place my number into his contacts.

My heart was racing fast. This was dangerous. This was stupid. My best guess would be that these guys were straight up bad news, and I'd likely end up face-down in a ditch if I backed out now. But, death at their hands would've been nothing compared to death at _his_ hands. No, not even his hands. Nothing compare to death at the work of his other, more frightening appendages and attachments.

I couldn't stop my fingers from shaking as I re-typed my cell phone number, having messed up the first time. I felt like I was signing my soul away to the devil, but I knew that technically, it already belonged to another.

When I finished he took his phone back, his eyes scanning the new contact that had been created in his phone. "Hmm. Sakura Haruno. What a fitting name," he mused, his eyes moving back towards me.

I flushed slightly, but pushed it down. I didn't want to get too close to these men or any of the others I would be working with. Not only were they a danger to me, I was a danger to them. I didn't want to be the cause of any deaths or worse, a life of fear like the one I was currently living. Even if they were bad men, I doubted they would be able to handle the mental trauma I was going through. No one could, because it was the one thing he excelled at. Breaking the mind.

"We will contact you. Welcome to our employment," The man said darkly, thrusting his hand out.

I stared it for a moment, knowing that it was much too late to back out and that my fate had already been sealed months ago. So, without longer pause, I lifted my hand to meet his and clasped his hand in mine.

As we shook, I couldn't help but notice the rough calluses on his palms. I could tell that he was strong, even though he didn't put too much pressure in his grip. Beneath the loose sleeve of his jacket I could see larger arm muscles, flexing and rippling as he pumped his arm. The wonder of whether he was attractive beneath all of his layers did pop up, but I pushed it down.

We let go at the same time, drawing away from each other. His eyes gleamed like a fat cat that had just received some cream with catnip on the side. His partner, however, was staring at me once more. I didn't know what to think of his staring, but didn't mind it. As long as he had eyes to stare with.

The two of them turned and parted from me without another word. I bit my lip once more, noticing now how the crowd seemed to part around me. It was like I had caught some kind of disease that none of them wanted to come in contact with. None of them looked me in the eyes, and when I did managed to get a look at their faces they looked at me with some kind of pity or fear.

I didn't know how to feel about that, but did find it useful for making my way back towards my building complex.

* * *

That night, I avoided sleep. I had nothing to do the next day, not like I would rest well in the first place. I saw no point in making myself endure the nightmares when I knew that I wouldn't rest well with sleep or without it. So, instead I lay curled on my bed, against the wall. The window above my bed faced the moon that peaked through all the tall skyscrapers, lightly illuminating my room in a gentle blue glow.

I reached out for my nightstand and picked up my energy drink. I sat up slightly to sip at it, letting the sweet, soft burn of the liquid slither down my throat.

When I discovered how well the energy drinks kept me awake, I made sure we had them on hand at all times. My mother had thought it was just a fad coming in, and had made a point of drinking some herself. I did what I usually did at those times and ignored her antics completely, well aware of her obvious desire to stay young.

Slowly, I stretched my body, my hands sliding under my pillow. My eyes shot open as I touched something flat and plastic. Eyebrows furrowed, I pinched the edge before brining it out from under my pillow so that I could look as see what had found it's way under my pillows. My whole body froze as I realized what it was, and my heart skipped a beat in my chest.

It was a folder, black and old. I'd had it for a few years, and it had only found its purpose a couple of months ago. Why it was under my pillow, I didn't know. I couldn't remember putting it there, and my mother didn't dare venture my room when I made it clear that she wasn't going to decorate it. There was no way any one had moved it. It should've still been packed in one of my boxes.

My finger tips traced the edge, my heart pulling towards the folder. I wanted to open it. I needed to open it. Deep down I knew that I shouldn't. I had looked at them for hours on end after they had first come into my possession. It hadn't been healthy, so I had hid them in my room and left them be. But, since we moved I had to unearth them from the depths of closet junk I had buried them under.

Just as I was about to open the folder, for an innocent glimpse at the contents, I heard a floor board groan outside of my bedroom door.

I shot up straight, the folder falling, forgotten, onto the floor. My eyes zeroed in on the bottom of the door, seeing shadows lurking on the other side of the door.

Panic filled my heart, and my hand shot under my pillows once more to grasp the metal handle of my pocket knife. It was useless against what would be on the other side. I had no experience with stabbing anything or anyone, but it had comforted me to know it was there after that long night in the woods. Knowing that I did have some form of fighting back, no matter how small, brought me enough comfort to feel a little safe. Not completely, never completely, because I never would be.

The lock on the door knob began to make noise, making my heart race. After only a couple seconds, I heard it give a releasing click as something picked it open. Slowly, the knob began to turn.

I was too frozen to even think of hiding. The better part of me knew that hiding was a fruitless effort, but even if I had the sense to try and hide my body would have never have cooperated. Fear was just as freezing as being stuck in a winter blizzard. It could halt you in your tracks no matter how hard you struggled to pull away and run.

The door opened with a painfully cliche groan, revealing the darkness behind. Something shifted, and a person emerged from the shadows and into the moonlight pooling from the window behind me.

I flinched, not expecting the person to have a face. He did, however, and it was a nice one at that. His hair looked as though it had been spun from gold, falling below his shoulders, the top layers of it pulled into a short ponytail, with some bangs covering one of his eyes. The eye that did show was a brilliant shade of blue, gazing around the room before falling upon me. He was a tall guy, with broad shoulders and leaner body. I could tell he was strong, even beneath the confines of his black jacket with red clouds.

I didn't know which was scarier: Almost finding myself face to face with my nightmares or with a stranger in the middle of the night?

The stranger gave me a once over, folding his arms over his chest. "You're Sakura Haruno, yeah?"

Blinking owlishly with confusion and caution, I nodded. "Yeah..."

The man's lips turned into a mischievous smirk. "I'm Deidara, from the Akatsuki. I was sent here to collect you for some training."

I remembered the word "Akatsuki" from the two men earlier that day. They were now my severely dangerous employers. I could truly say that I hadn't expected them to break into my home in the middle of the night to collect me for some kind of training.

"I never gave you all my address. Only my phone number," I whispered in confusion, wanting to keep the situation quiet so that my mother wouldn't wake and find me conversing with a stranger in the middle of the night.

His smirk widened. "We have our ways. It only takes a name and we can find out a lot, yeah."

Deidara glanced once more around my room, before motioning for me to follow him out.

Trying to still my beating heart, I slowly stood. I pulled my converse on and picked up one of the stray jackets that hadn't quite made it to my new closet yet. I followed him out quietly, feeling a small thrill I had only felt a couple times before. The times I had snuck out of those house without my mother knowing were limited, because, in truth, she was actually a very light sleeper and I had never really had a reason to do it only but once or twice. Now, however, her room was too far away from mine to disturb and I had a job I needed to do.

I followed the blond obediently, but not with trust.

He wasn't trustworthy, neither were the rest of his little gang. They were too dangerous and it was obvious that they had a way of getting what they wanted and needed. Being careful hadn't really been a quality of mine, but I would have to make it one if I was to keep working with them. I didn't want to die, nor did I want them to find out my own secret.

I felt a small rush of adrenaline coarse through me as I realized we had made it out of my apartment with any inkling that my mother had even remotely stirred in her sleep, and now we were casually walking towards the stares. I had felt this kind of rush once before, and it's memories were beginning to invade my memory. I didn't want to remember them, didn't want to remember that night. So, instead I focused on Deidara's pony tail as we made our way down to the first floor of the complex.

The man who attended the front desk was dead asleep, sitting slumped in his chair with his head dangling at an odd angle that would no doubt hurt in the morning. Deidara strolled over to him and reached behind the man's neck, pulling out a small syringe I wouldn't have seen if he hadn't pulled it out.

I watched, biting my lips nervously, as Deidara pocketed the needle and continued to make his way for the front door.

Slightly disturbed, I followed.

As we crossed the threshold of the front, the chilled night air instantly hugged me tightly. It was crawling up my sleeves, making me grab the sleeves and press my arms closer to my body. It was sprinkling, the small beads of water hitting the top of my head and leaving cold trails in its wake. Each breath I took in felt like I was breath in particles of ice, and each breath out left a cloud of heated air leaving my body.

Deidara was unfazed by the cool air of the night, making a bee line for an expensive looking sleek, black car parked right in front of the building. It was running, with the tinted black windows closed tight except for the passenger side window that was cracked open just a little. Through that crack, something that I assumed was cigarette smoke was curling out of the car with skyward dreams.

When we reached the car, Deidara opened one of the back doors, sliding inside all the way so that I could follow.

My heart was hammering inside of my chest now. I was scared. I wasn't afraid to admit that, but I also knew that I was the one who had done this to myself. I had wanted the distraction, so here it was. I had to face the consequences of my past and present with a brave face. I wouldn't be able to go on with life if I continued to live in hesitation and fear.

Without another thought, I lowered myself into the car smoothly. I was hit with the smell of smoke, mint, and, oddly, wood. The smell clung even tighter to me as I swung the door closed, trapping myself into a car with dangerous criminals. I had to remind myself that they were my bosses now, but even that couldn't still the feeling of a death ride.

My eyes stalled in looking at the two bodies in the front, before my curiosity won over my sense of survival. I glanced up, and found my eyes clashing with the most attractive shade of caramel brown eyes, glancing at me from the rear view mirror. They were attached to a boy with shorter red hair that was cut choppily, framing his face in an attractively messy way. He gazed at me lazily, not saying a word before he pulled away from the building and we found ourselves zooming along the highway.

The man in the front seat was harder to see, considering he was in front of me. All I could see of him was his long, ebony colored hair that was pulled back in a loose ponytail. I could see the cigarette in his hand, the stick getting shorter each time his arm drew it in front of his face and went back to rest on the door hand.

Pursing my lips at the stunning silence, I looked out the window to try and distract myself from the frantic beating inside of my chest.

There was still a lot of people walking around outside even though it was so late. The lights of the buildings and street lamps kept the whole city alive, even when it was dark, cold, and still raining. It was kind of beautiful. The rain blurred lots of the colors, but seeing the darkness light up so brightly made it shine with an artistic quality that one didn't get to see too often.

The people looked just as strict and quiet as they did during the day. Very rarely did I spy a face actually expressing outward emotion, making the artist in me cringe and gag at the lack of expression. The artist me didn't get to speak much any more, considering every time I tried drawing or painting all I could create was one thing. Him. He dictated so much of my life, and he wasn't even human. So, I gave up drawing so that he had one less hold on my life. But removing one finger wouldn't deter the power of the rest of the hand, the hand he had wrapped so tightly around my life.

I was looking at all the faces through the dots of rain against the windows, when it happened. We had stopped at a red light, the car still silent as before. I was examining the car that was off to our right, parked next to us as it awaited the color change of the light. As the light turned green, the car peeled out and the world seemed to come to a crawl. Standing on the side walk, which I could now see through the empty space the last car had left, was him. He had no face, and his suit blended in perfectly with the rest of the crowd.

My hand covered my mouth, holding in screams as they stared directly into his white, plain face. No one in the crowd screamed, they didn't seem to see him. They did, however, walk around him as though avoiding a trash can. It was like he had a force field that repelled them from walking into him. He was there only for a couple seconds longer, before another car passed us, intercepting the stare down between he and I, and then he was gone.

Deidara was watching me as I turned from the window, pressing my back into the seat as far as it would allow me to. I couldn't think, I couldn't breath. Disbelief. Utter disbelief, and fear. He had found me already, and I hadn't even been in my new home for a week. His game was still going, and there was no way to pause it. If he could just appear on the streets, in public, where else could he pop up?

My mind was racing in panic, when I felt our car stop. Snapping out of myself, I looked around slowly. We were in a slummy looking area that provided land for rows of beat-up looking houses. There was no one outside at all, but the cars littering the edges of the streets told that these houses were indeed taken.

The black haired male suddenly opened my door, and my eyes shot up to his face to stare into he crimson colored eyes.

He was an attractive guy, with finely chiseled features. There were two line-like cuts on either side of his nose. The bangs of his hair framed his face nicely, highlighting the odd color of his eyes. His skin was as pale as snow, but his body was built like a snake. Thinner, but you could tell just by looking at him that he was capable of dealing a deadly blow.

"Come on, girl, I don't like waiting," The red-head commented from somewhere behind the black haired male, his voice as smooth as silk.

Biting my lip, I raised myself out of the car to face my fate.

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**Piper: Hope you guys enjoyed!**

**Please review!**


	3. Can't Run pt3

**Piper: Hi guys! I'm really happy you're liking the story. I hope I can keep it interesting for you.**

**I don't own Naruto or Slender Man/Slender.**

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Chapter 3 - Can't Run pt3

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**Sakura Haruno**

I rose out of the car, my front dangerously close to brushing against the attractive ebony haired male that had opened my door for me. I could smell the lingering scent of his long smoked cigarette clinging to his person, mixed with an attractive odor of some kind of cologne. I ignored the tingle running up and down my delicate spine, and carefully moved around him so that our two bodies did not touch.

When I passed his shoulder, my head barely taller than it, I got to get a better look at the red head. He was shorter than his two companions, much shorter, but still taller than I was. His posture was elegant, yet slightly slack as though he were a bit tired. I could see his eyes more clear, and how utterly unamused he seemed with everything going on around him.

Deidara was standing a few feet away, staring at the onyx haired male with a cold look. He seemed to snap out of it when he noticed my gaze, his face twisting into a smirk before motioning for me to follow him and the red head into the house. I was a bit more hesitant to follow this time, but with the black haired male right behind me I knew right there that turning back wasn't an option. Turning back hadn't been an option the moment I had approached the two males in the street. Turning back hadn't been an option when I first entered that forest so long ago. I just had to keep moving forward.

The boys didn't even knock on the front door, just opened it freely and strutted right in. I followed after in a much less confident fashion, hearing the onyx haired male close the door behind me. Shivers were rolling up and down my spine as I realized just how trapped I truly was in life. My body was trapped by gang members, while my mind was trapped by an unimaginable spook.

My eyes drank in the sight of the living room we had just waltzed in to, seeing it relatively clean. It was much nicer on the inside than it was on the inside. It was a bit cleaner, for one, but it was also filled to the brim with up-to-date furniture, electronics, and other house hold items. The front window had a rather large flat screen placed in front of it, with one large 'L' shaped couch facing it with a glass coffee table within leg resting distance. There was two recliner chairs, large and plush. There were a few suspicious items scattered around that made a heavy reminder that this house didn't belong to some average person. This was a home to a couple gang members, who were no doubt armed to the teeth and lacking a conscious to give a single fuck on who they killed.

Next, my eyes took in all the unfamiliar faces staring at me as I entered the room. The silver-haired man and his partner were there among the faces, the silverette casually laid across one of the plush couches. The masked man was sitting at a dinner table placed near a large archway that seemingly led to the kitchen, an alarming amount of money evenly stacked before his greed eyes. Sharing the couch with the silver haired man was a man who was alarmingly tall even when sitting, with blue skin and even darker blue hair. Sitting in front of the television was a man, who had an odd orange mask covering his face. It only had one eye hole, and the mask was decorated to swirl in to the single eye hole.

The characters sitting at the table with the masked man were the ones who both scared me the most, and intrigued me the most. One was a man with black and white skin, literally. One half of his body, cut vertically down the center of him, one side of him was the color of onyx and the other of chalk. His eyes were an intense shade of gold, shaggy green hair sprouting from his head. He was staring at me almost hungrily, and I could've sworn on my rapid heartbeat that he had licked his lips before I had torn my gaze from his.

The second male had unbelievable long and shaggy black hair, and looked strikingly similar to the one that had been smoking in the front seat. His face was elegantly cut, with smooth, pale skin. His eyes were the same shade of blood red as the other males. There was only one imperfection on his face, and that was a small scar right on the top of his right cheekbone, just below his eye. It made him look all the more dangerous, furthering his predatory look.

The last male was the one I couldn't quite get over. He was a carrot top, his attractive features framed lightly by his shaggy orange hair. The part of him I couldn't get over, however, was his eyes and piercings. His eyes were a soft shade of gray mixed with purple, but he had no whites. The color filled all of his eyes, and they were ringed. Around each pupil was a ring, and a ring around that one, continuing all the way until you couldn't see further. His piercings, however, were all over. Three on either side of the bridge of his nose, snake bites, one eyebrow, too many along his ears to count, and an industrial bar through each ear horizontally.

All of these men were peculiar. I knew that I had no room to talk, having been naturally born with hair the color of a freshly bloom cherry blossom. But some of them had eyes, hair, and skin that didn't make sense. Somehow my hair had come out pink, so I could sympathize with that. However, a man completely split in half with onyx black on one side and chalk white on the other, and a man who was completely blue, were not something I knew was ever possible in nature. Nor did I ever think I would see someone with red eyes, or ringed eyes at that.

Something was off and if I had felt threatened by a car ride with three of these men, I now had the complete feeling of a sheep cornered by wolves. These oddly colored men were older than me. Maybe not by a lot, only a couple years or so, but they all each had the knowledge and experience to wipe me out without a care.

My life had just become a fucking mine field. One wrong step and everything would get blown sky high.

The orange haired man rose from his seat, his eyes looking into my very soul as he prowled around the table and closer and closer to me. I could feel my heart skipping each time I heard his foot hit the ground, his ever dangerous presence coming closer and closer each half a second. My whole body grew colder as he drew in the last few feet, standing only a couple feet away from me.

I mentally reprimanded myself. They weren't the scariest thing I had faced. I knew of greater, and I knew that even though they could kill me, death at their hands would be ten times better than death in _his_ hands. I had been the one to choose the road I was following. I had was the only one to blame for anything that came out of this badly. This was all on me.

"You are Sakura Haruno?" The ginger questioned, his voice as smooth and sweet as chocolate, a melody sung through each movement of his lips.

My knees quivered in response. Whether it was from fear or the pure vibrations of his voice, I didn't know.

When tested, my voice failed to support me and help me answer. So, instead I settled for a shaky, yet confidant nod. I would have to give them my all if I wanted to live. I couldn't slack on the job or on my manners. I didn't know what kind of people they were yet, so I had to just make sure to keep myself in a straight line until I figured out how much flexibility I would be allowed to have when hanging around them.

There was a low round of chuckles at my noiseless answer. They seemed to deduce that I was nervous, and that made them enjoy the experience that much more.

I didn't want to look any of them in the eye. All the odd colors around me were so intense, I knew if I looked I would get myself lost. I wasn't a fool. I knew these men were both dangerous, and dangerously attractive in their own ways. Each little suspiciously odd quirk only made them more attractive in their individuality. It was a bad thing to think so, but I couldn't deny it. I couldn't let it go further then admiration. Not with the threat looming over my shoulders, and the potential danger they obviously possessed.

"You were right Kakuzu, she is thin," The ginger called over his shoulder to the man in the mask.

I could finally put a name to a face, which made them seem slightly more human. They were people, with names, likes, and dislikes. Rationalizing them that was took a bit of glamor out of their fear-instilling image. It helped me calm down for a moment, so that I could catch a breath.

_They're just people. They're just people. They're just people._

"You know what you're getting yourself into, girl?"

The question was slightly blurred, echoing around me as I tried to find my center and peace within my own mind.

Inhale.

Exhale.

_They're just people. They're just people. They're just people._

My mouth moved, but before the strangled words could even think of leaving he took ahold of my chin. Sparks of stomach warming electricity shot from his warm finger tips and down my body, the skin where he was touching burning hotly at the skin-on-skin contact. It had been so long since I had touched someone and hadn't feared their bodies being cold. I wasn't afraid of his touch in that way. He was a different kind of danger than the one that made my skin crawl.

"It's rude to look away from people in the eye when you speak," He murmured softly.

I forced myself to look. Those ringed eyes turned my vertebrae into liquid and my knees into jelly, and it was getting harder for me to breathe with each passing second.

With my limited air, I chose to use it on answering this dangerous snake of a man. "I'm sorry. B-But... Yes. I know."

"I don't think you do," He said, his eyes becoming colder. "By doing this you are giving yourself to us completely. You are our little messenger. Ours. No one else's. If we tell to do something, it will be done. No hesitations. No questions. You are to take what we give, and do with it as instructed. If you betray us, we will know. If you turn us in, we will find out. If you blab any secrets, we will know. If you so much as whisper a word of who you work to to anyone, we will know. If this happens, we will find not only you, but your family and friends.

"Do you understand?" He finished, using his grip on my face to pull me onto my tiptoes, closer to him as his face bent down closer to mine.

Word vomit came out instead of what I should've actually said.

"I don't have friends," I spat out, feeling anger bubbling inside the pit of my stomach at the thought of him threatening the people close to me. I did that enough on my own by just being around them, I didn't need my new bosses hanging over their shoulders.

His fingers tightened around my jaw, his eyes flashing slightly. I felt a flash of hatred for him, angry to be manipulated in such a way. I knew deep down that I was used to being manipulated, but that didn't mean I had to like it. If I hadn't wanted to be ordered around and intimidated, then I should've just stayed sitting when I saw those two obviously dangerous men searching for hire. It was my own fault that I was in that predicament.

"Do you understand?" He repeated more firmly, his nose almost touching mine.

I wanted to spit in his face for talking to me like a child and making me feel so mentally-violated, but I knew nothing good would come of it. He would probably strike me, and my father, before he left for war, had always told me that spitting in someone's face was one of most disrespectful things you could do to a person. I had promised him once at the tender age of seven that I wouldn't ever stoop so low, even offering to curl my tiniest finger around his own finger in a pinkie promise. The oath of a child.

"Yes," I whispered angrily, gritting my teeth.

"Louder. I can't hear you."

"Yes," I bit out, feeling tears of anger threatening to fall from my eyes.

He let go of my chin and I jerked away from him, stumbling back a couple of steps. I took a moment to breathe, to calm my anger and to push back those damn tears.

I hated how much of a crier I was. I cried when I was angry enough, I cried when I was sad, and I cried when I felt too much pain. I had such a low pain tolerance. I could hold my own in a regular high school fight and through the bumps and bruises of life, no doubt, but when it came down so feeling intense pain I would cry. My pride, however, was what made me hold it in most of the time.

When my breath caught up to me, I didn't even want to look back but I knew I had to. I looked back, seeing them all watching me once more. The silver haired man was grinning, eyeing me with this wild look in his eyes that made my stomach curl. The man that was split down the middle wasn't grinning, but his eyes held the same expression as the silverette. Except they were more... hungry. The rest were a little more stoic, though the man with the swirled mask was staring at us with his head tilted curiously to the side.

It took me a moment to remind myself where exactly I was, and who's face I had been wanting to spit into. I felt my stomach go cold with fear, realizing what I had just done. I had taken a snap at a coiled snake, and had been lucky enough to get off with just a warning. I would have to keep my temper in check, because after that small encounter I knew that I would have to be as respectful as I could.

"Your records from your old high school said that you enjoyed parkour," The man said suddenly, continuing on as if he hadn't just crushed my jaw and threatened everyone I knew.

"Yeah," I said, trying to subtly move my jaw a little to get the feeling back into it.

"Were you any good?" He asked next, turning his back on me to go and sit back at the table.

I shrugged my shoulders, even though he couldn't see with his back turned. "I was alright. I've always been a bit flexible, so it was easier for me to do. It's been a long time since I've done it though."

"You're weak."  
The bluntness of the statement stung, but I couldn't deny it. It had been very long since I had last exercised, and I had lost all the muscle I had used to have. I was more bony than fit. Fear could do that to a person, because when you're scared of something that you can't always see, you don't leave your house unless you positively have to.

He didn't wait for a reply, seeming to know that he wouldn't get one after a comment that rude. "You will need to put some weight back on and begin working towards parkour. If we choose to keep you, you will need that kind of flexibility and quick thinking for some of the bigger jobs we may have. Lots of these will need to be on foot, and we will have to teach you have to avoid the authorities without getting yourself in a bind.

"I am Pein, leader of the Akatsuki. After introductions you will be given your first assignment," He said, sitting down and staring at me from behind the table.

"What about training?" I asked, my brows furrowing slightly.

"That is your training. We'll leave your diet in your hands, but as for building muscles, you should do plenty of that doing your job," He said, before beginning to introduce the members.

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**Piper: Alright guys! Sorry this is a bit late, I've had a lot of stuff going on this Halloween. Oh, Happy Halloween to everyone! I hope you all got lots of candy (even if you're an older teen like me XD) and enjoy the horror-filed, candy-coma-inducing holiday!**

**Please review!**


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